requiem for the departed ( hat cho mot nguoi nam xuong )
Requiem For The Departed)
( Adaptation from the song: Hat Cho Mot Nguoi Nam Xuong created by Trinh Cong Son and presented by Khanh Ly)
This poem is dedicated to the Pilots of the Ukraine Air Force who sacrificed their lives to their beloved country.
One day you departed this world
Your wings soaring so high into the vast blue sky
Leaving all your friends behind.
Never you returned to the places that once gave you lot of joy.
You went away on the journey alone.
With nobody as your companion on the last mission
Looking down on the cemetery and the rain started to fall
Where the weeping birds perched on tree.branches above your freshly tomb.
Did you leave to forget the futility of human’ s hatred and revenge?
People queued to say goodbye to you on a sad and cloudy day
The coffin was laid down and the mother earth embraced your body
To its original life as your angel soul touching the face of God.
You are flying above the highest mountain.
Like the birds leaving their forest.
Like the dying heart empty of love.
Like the dream shattered ’cause it is your destiny.
Your lover and your friends are still here
The grass still very green in your back yard
The sun still rises every morning
Only you are no longer here, the shadow of your wings disappeared into the far horizon.
They will soon forget and move on
‘ Cause days go on into months and then years
And all the traces of your life went to oblivion
But they don't know you have returned.
To the old house of your youthful days
To the arms of your smiling mother
To the dancing flames of the warm fireplace in the winter
To the exuberant laughter of happiness with your love ones.
Trieu Nguyen Tam
November 1, 2022.